Sports viewing has become as significant as one of society’s most key entertainment sources. With modern marvels such as the satellite, people can stream their favourite games on the internet in the comforts of their own home in real-time. As Lewis Hamilton overtakes Sebastian Vettel during the Monaco Grand Prix, I put my feet up on a table relishing the roars of the V6 engines. Sports like Formula 1 rely on sponsorships and endorsements to take part in the motorsports competitions. For people to be able to watch these sports games, companies such as MSN sports help broadcast it to them for payment. As with anything with money, as more of it is involved, will sport become more commercialized?
In America, the average baseball player who played in the NFL made 4 million dollars. That’s a substantial amount of wealth for a person playing a sport professionally. When players play professionally infamous sports such as football, they are paid based on how prominent they are in the community which is sparked based on their talent in a certain sport. So when sports become increasingly commercial and more convenient to watch from home, more talents can be discovered and paid diligently. Thus, this incentivizes more sportsmen and sportswomen to ameliorate their game and persevere to be a better player. Not only that but with more media attention, players can become celebrities that amplify their resolve to be better players as a player not looking for fame is not looking for glory.
However, this does not uphold the values of a sportsman at all! When the intent of working hard and achieving ambitions is to only make a monetary gain, then, the purpose of sports deteriorates. Sports as a whole is used as a way to bring people together, to sweat and cook under the hot sun together.
127 our experts are availableright now
When people decide to go professional in the sport, they do so because they are passionate about it. They play the sport as a hobby and made it their career as such. However, we cannot discount the fact that to be successful in sports one must be adept in that specific sport. But, as our parents always say, “ work towards your job where you can do something you love.” This is true for even the most renowned players like Lionel Messi who says, “A child’s smile is worth more than all the money.” They play for the values of sports for the money. As such, when more money is brought into the picture, the values of a good sportsman is curtailed.
Despite the lessening in the values of a sportsman, we cannot discontinue the economic benefits of commercializing sports. To produce a good show, multitudes of jobs such as sports broadcaster, commentary, etc are made. Not only that but investors will pour money into the state to build lavish stadiums for sporting events, bolstering the country’s economy. In Singapore, as the surge of people looking for a good football game increased the ancient National Stadium would be insufficient to cater to this demand.
Hence, the Singaporean government set aside some funds to refurbish the stadium by giving it a major overhaul. After demolishing the entire stadium they built the most mind-boggling stadium over it. With roofs touching the sky which slid open to reveal the scorching summer’s sun, the new and improved national stadium hosted big-name tournaments including world cup winning teams straight after opening( which I had the pleasure to watch). Building such infrastructure and calling on to vogue teams, constructs a positive image of the country, thus, indirectly improving the economy.
The conventional source of funds for sports commercializing is thought to be from investors and donations. However, in recent years, there has been another source for companies to earn profit from commercialization.
Sports bets
Sports betting is the wagering of money on certain sports events where victory can be based on the score, victor, or any other quantity. And with all betting actions, addiction arises. Problem gambling especially in sports has been increasing over the years as more websites make it easy for users to place bets on events and these websites are usually managed by major companies holding stakes in major sporting events. When the bettor wins the bet, they take commissions from them which is typically ten percent of their winnings. In Singapore, companies like Singapore Pools protect and forbid people from making multiple bets to ensure that they do not become addicted to the activity.
Overall, commercialization is beneficial for the player’s well beings but not their moral values.
